Date/Time: June 17, 2018 1700z start
Call: KB7Q
QTH: DN44lw, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Frequency: 144.135 MHz +_ QRM/Birdies KB7Q always first JT65b
Gear: 2x 9el. Yagis, 800 watts, K3S w/transverter, excellent pre-amp, Honda generator
Note: No Internet
Thunder and lightning … all very frightening! Thankfully the
rain stopped for an hour when I first arrived in DN44 so I could set things up
and not have to worry about getting water in the coax connectors. Murphy
blinked and only made my GPS/Compass stop working after I calibrated my azimuth
ring. Phew! Then the big rains came. The accompanying picture tells the story.
In spite of +10 db rain static at times, and some close in lightning
I worked both G4YTL and DK5EW for their 50th State. It took a while
to locate DL1VPL and his single Yagi station, but Thomas and I completed for
his State #48. The whole trip was well worth just those three contacts, I worked a total of 48 stations, many needing Wyoming, before I started thinking
about dry socks, hot coffee, and home.
This was probably my most challenging EME field trip, with
heavy rain, 4 degree C temperatures, extremely rapid Faraday, and a balky
generator that would only let me have 700 watts from the amp. I never actually saw either the moon or the sun. But as the Bard
said, “Alls well that ends well.”
 |
| Warm and dry in Wyoming. Completing with G4SWX (-17). |
In the log: PA9RX (-22), I3MEK (-16), DK5EW (-19), SM6NOC (-20), RK3FG (-15), OZ1LPR (-16), UA3PTW (-25), WA1NPZ (-16), W8KEN (-26), ON4AOI (-17), G4DML (-23), ES3RF (-21), RX1AS (-29), UX5UL (-23), G4CDN (-21), PA2CHR (-24), G4PZL (-23), G4YTL (-26), PA4MS (-20), I3EVK (-16), F6HVK (-23), G8BCG (-22), ON4KHG (-24), LY2IJ (-27), S52LM (-22), DL1VPL (-25), OH3AWW (-28), HA6NQ (-18), G8RWG (-22), LY5E (-24), I2SVA (-23), DM2BHG (-20), SP8NR (-22), LZ2FO (-23), G4URT (-25), G4SWX (-17), DL2HWA (-16), DK4RC (-18), NJ2R (-24), I2FAK (-16), NH6Y (-24), N4QWZ (-24), VE1KG (-17), K2ZJ (-22), W7MEM (-22), W8KEN (-19), JH0BBE (-27), JR3REX (-20). LoTW upload done.